Month: February 2018

Most criminologists agree that the best way to keep inmates from committing crimes while in prison is through keeping them occupied and giving them a sense of hope. Although this can be challenging to provide for inmates serving long terms of incarceration, studies have shown that keeping inmates occupied with positive ways to use their time, including the ability to communicate with those on the outside of prison, can dramatically reduces levels of behavioral infractions as well as recidivism once inmates are released.

Securus Technologies is one of the top providers of inmate communications technologies in the country. Over the course of the last decade, it has been rolling out its video visitation system. The system has enabled prisoners throughout the country to stay in nearly constant touch with their loved ones and friends on the outside, giving them a way to maintain socialization with law-abiding, pro-social citizens.

This is a critical element in maintaining a sense of hope and purpose in the inmate population. Without the ability to communicate and socialize with law-abiding citizens, inmates often fall into the prison milieu, searching out social belonging with the only peer group they can find, namely, other prisoners. This is one of the key factors in what is known within sociology as institutionalization. This term describes the gradual dependence that forms within the prisoner on the carceral environment. Prisoners who become institutionalized often find it difficult or impossible to reintegrate into society, having come to rely on the antisocial peer group provided by other prisoners as well as the structure of institutional life.

With its video visitation technology, Securus is providing a crucial means for these prisoners to maintain positive relationships with those on the outside, reducing the incidence of prisoners that become completely socialized to the criminal milieu.

Jim Larkin and Michael Lacey represent courageous journalism at its best. Investigative news journalists have always been the target of corrupt people. Threats and intimidation are common problems encountered. It takes conviction of one’s beliefs to keep up the spirit of honest reporting, in the face of such challenges. Jim Larkin and Michael Lacey have staunchly stuck to their scruples and called out corruption in the form of former sheriff Joe Arpaio’s pardon by president Donald Trump.

Joe Arpaio is the former sheriff of Maricopa region. He was well-known for his sadist approach to inmates during his time as jailor. He used torture, brutality as his methods for dealing with prisoners and indulged in acts against humanity as well. He created a tented area to house prisoners where the faced extreme heat conditions. Inmates were often denied necessary medical care and amenities.

Joe Arpaio was also biased against immigrants and racial minorities and often expressed his prejudice towards them. His cultivated approach of toughness and barbarity was brought to light several times by New Times reports.

The arrest was withdrawn. However, Larkin and Lacey counter-filed a case against Joe Arpaio. They later won the case and were given over 3. million dollars as compensation. They used this award money for the aid of the Hispanic population. This was done through the initiation of the Frontera Fund. These Hispanic sections had been unjustly targeted by Joe Arpaio and were victims of discrimination.

Lacey and Larkin have a long career in news publishing, spanning several decades. Michael Lacey entered the world of journalism in Arizona through his first publication called Arizona Times, which was rechristened as New Times soon after. The New Times was published once every week, starting in 1970. Jim Larkin from Phoenix joined Lacey’s team. Larkin’s entry helped New Times grow in numbers.

New Times continued to remain afloat even as other similar publications ceased to exist. New Times became a significant player in the world of journalism when they published a controversial piece on the alleged killing of a fellow journalist, Don Bolles. Read more: Phoenix New Times | Wikipedia and Lacey and Larkin Frontera Fund

This news account catapulted New Times into a large scale publication with a renewed readership. The New Times not only publishes facts, but it also promotes art, music, food, and culture by giving these ample space on its pages.

The Phoenix New Times has now expanded into a widely read paper with several subsidiary periodicals, which include the LA Weekly and the Village Voice. The journalists of Larkin and Lacey owned publications have been the recipients of several awards over the years.

These include the Investigative Reporters and Editors, Pulitzer Prize, the Sigma Delta Chi Awards, the Livingstone Awards for Young Journalists, Journalist of the Year, and the James Beard Foundation Journalism Awards.